P ARAMETERS D AY 5, S EPT. 7, 2012 Introduction to Syntax ANTH 3590/7590 Harry Howard Tulane University

C OURSE MANAGEMENT If you notify me by ahead of time of a scheduled absence, I will not hold it against you. 9/07/12 2 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

P HOTOS ! 9/07/12 3 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

1.6 P ARAMETERS Go over vocabulary in bold face 9/07/12 4 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

I NTRODUCTION The previous pages argue that much of the grammar of language is universal. If all of grammar were universal, children would only need to learn words, and all grammars would be the same. 9/07/12 5 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

T HREE PARAMETERS The null-subject parameter Mary thinks that *(they) speak Spanish. María piensa que hablan español. The Wh-parameter What do you think he will say? Ni xiang ta hui shuo shenme? The head-position parameter Close the door ~ desire for change Muneul dadara ~ byunhwa-edaehan galmang 9/07/12 6 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

B ACKGROUND TO AN EXAMPLE Well, consider the following sentences, in which the names have been labelled for thematic role, as so: Ag = Agent, the person or thing that does the action of the verb Pat = Patient, the person or thing that receives the action of the verb 9/07/12 7 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

R EVIEW BASIC WORD ORDER 9/07/12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane 8 1. Mary Ag kissed John Pat 2. Mary Ag John Pat kissed 3. John Pat kissed Mary Ag 4. John Pat Mary Ag kissed 5. kissed Mary Ag John Pat 6. kissed John Pat Mary Ag 1. SVO 2. *SOV 3. *OVS 4. *OSV 5. *VSO 6. *VOS

P RE - VS. POSTPOSITIONS 9/07/12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane 9 7. at home (is where I want to be) 8. home at (is where I want to be) [P N] is typical of VO languages [N P] is typical of OV languages

COMPOUND NOUNS ACT LIKE SMALL SENTENCES 9/07/12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane 10 man-eating shark fire-breathing dragon heart-rending story Greek-speaking interpreter self-cleaning oven OVS

1.7 P ARAMETER SETTING 9/07/12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane 11

L EARNING A LANGUAGE Involves learning the morphemes of the language ~ lexical learning setting parameters ~ structural learning The latter makes it easy for children to learn the language. 9/07/12 12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

E XERCISES 9/07/12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane 13

B ACKGROUND Sample sentence: John has gone home. Auxiliary verbs are heads that take a verb and the stuff associated with it as a complement: has [gone home] Verbs are heads that take a direct object and maybe other stuff associated with it as a complement: gone [home] Any variation from this canonical (basic – normal – underlying) order must be the result of a movement. 9/07/12 14 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

E XERCISE 1.1, E LIZABETHAN SYNTAX 1. ‘Seawater shalt thou drink’ ‘seawater’ should be complement to ‘drink’ > ‘drink seawater’ ‘drink seawater’ should be complement to ‘shalt’ > ‘shalt drink seawater’ ‘thou’ should be subject > ‘Thou shalt drink seawater’ 9/07/12 15 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

1.1 OTHERS ? 9/07/12 16 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

1.2 C HILD SYNTAX ( GO OVER EACH ONE ) 9/07/12 17 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane

NEXT TIME Q1 Phrases & clauses , Ex 2.1 9/07/12 ANTH3590/7590, Harry Howard, Tulane 18